High Molecular Weight Chitosan as a functional biomaterial. Properties and cytotoxic evaluation

DI SANTO, MC; DE MATTEO, R; DOMINGUEZ RUBIO, AP; ALAIMO, A; PÉREZ, OE

Congreso; LatinXChem 2020; 2020

Biomaterials refer to biologically derived raw materials applied primarily for their structural and biological properties. Between the major requirements, biomaterials should be biocompatible, non-immunogenic and biodegradable. Particularly, marine-derived polysaccharide have attracted attention for their versatile usefulness in the biotechnological field. Chitosan is a linear polysaccharide obtained from chitin, the second most abundant polysaccharides on Earth, whose structure is comprised of deacetylated D-glucosamine and N-acetyl-D-glucosamine units. We characterized a new High Molecular Weight Chitosan (H-CS) obtained from chitin extracted from the residues of Pleoticus muelleri shrimps, the main crustacean exploited in Mar del Plata, Argentine maritime platform of the Atlantic Ocean. This H-CS could have practical implications in food, cosmetic, nutraceuticals and clinical therapies.